NPC

An NPC is an automated Non Player Character. While NPCs technically include enemies/monsters, passive critters, and friendly characters, this wiki differentiates between the three classes of NPCs with the labels "enemy", "critter", and "NPC", and each have their own separate page on this wiki. This page is about the friendly automated characters who provide a service to players.

button on them. Most NPCs are vendors, selling items to players in exchange for coins, and can be sold items by a player in order to obtain coins. Some NPCs also perform other functions.

Most NPCs are "Town" NPCs, appearing after various milestones are achieved in game advancement (details below). They move into structures the player must generally build, known as Houses, which are generally required for Town NPCs to remain available. Each NPC will need its own house.

Town NPCs that have moved into Houses reduce enemy spawn rates in the area, an effect that increases the more of them are present. With four or more Town NPCs in close proximity, enemies generally stop spawning on or near the visible screen altogether. Players tend to utilize this effect by building large structures ("Towns" or "Bases") with several integrated Houses, to serve as their safe haven. These reductions are usually overridden by Events like Blood Moons or Goblin Invasions, during which spawn rates return to normal, or are elevated, and enemies will once again attack players and NPCs in the area.

Town NPCs generally walk around during the day. They remain still in their assigned Houses at night. NPCs have limited health and can take damage, and ultimately die from enemies, Traps, Lava, or by drowning in Water (); though they cannot be attacked directly by players (outside of special Voodoo Doll accessories or Rotten Eggs). Their health regenerates over time, and if killed, they will also respawn following a delay, as long as a suitable vacant House is still available.

Occasionally, NPCs sit in Chairs. They also randomly "talk" to each other, or to the player (shown as mouth movement and speech bubbles). Most NPCs also have an attack method, which they will use to defend themselves against enemies in the vicinity.

There are currently 23 / 21 Town NPCs, 7 / 6 of whom normally appear in Hardmode. An additional 3 / 2 NPCs can be encountered that don't move into Houses.

Contents

Each Town NPC requires a suitable, vacant House. A House is a room enclosed by a frame of blocks, with user-placed background walls, along with a valid light source, flat surface item, and comfort item (see House->Furniture). Certain room dimensions are also required (see House for full details). Houses must not be located near Corruption or Crimson, and if those biomes spread too close to an occupied House, the NPC living there may move out.

Town NPC home assignments can be rearranged using NPC Flags from the Housing Menu, where players can also check whether a room is a suitable House

The Guide and Old Man are unique in that they always spawn upon creating a world. The Guide will usually move into the first House built. The Old Man does not move into a House, but rather remains near the Dungeon's entrance, and respawns the following day if killed (while Skeletron hasn't yet been defeated).

If a House occupied by an NPC is damaged in a way that makes it invalid, the NPC will move out and walk around the area until a suitable House is restored.

Items can be bought simply by right-clicking an NPC and taking items from their inventory while their cost in coins is available in the player's inventory. (Or, in the desktop version, when the required number of coins is in the players savings.) Holding the right mouse button on stackable items allows the player to buy the item in bulk. The buy speed increases the longer the right-click button is held.

All NPC vendors can also be used to sell unwanted or surplus items to gain coins. The unwanted item(s) must be in the player's inventory. Hovering over the item while the NPC's inventory screen is open will display its sell value. Items are always sold to vendors at one-fifth their purchase price. Not all items have a sell value (very common items such as Dirt or Wood have no value). To sell the item, move it into the NPC's inventory.

Sales to NPCs can be canceled while the NPC's inventory screen is still open: Sold items can be taken back in exchange for the amount they were sold for. This does not hold true for returning bought items, which must be sold back at their standard sell rate of one-fifth the purchase price.

All NPC vendors buy and sell at the same price. Many item prices can be decreased by equipping a Discount Card, which is a rare drop from Pirate Invasions.

An NPC takes about 2 minutes to spawn after another NPC has spawned or dawn passes.

If valid housing is offscreen during spawning, the NPC will spawn directly into its house.

NPCs will teleport home during the night if the NPC and their home are off-screen.

Unlike chests and structures generated on world creation, bound NPCs spawn around the player's position on-the-fly, similar to enemy spawns. They are temporary, and can respawn elsewhere if missed (see NPC spawning).

NPCs are known to "visit" other NPCs, talk, and play a form of rock paper scissors.

NPCs visiting in a home with a War Table.

NPCs can drown in water 2 tiles deep, whereas players require 3 tiles of water depth in order to drown.

As the Mobile version currently has no housing interface, it is not possible to assign NPCs to certain houses, except through making any other possible houses (besides the desired one) not suitable for housing.

Each time the Traveling Merchant spawns, he will have a random shop inventory. If the player leaves the world during 4:30-12:00 in-game time, and enters again, there is a 22% chance he will re-spawn (with a new shop inventory).

Bound NPCs found underground can be freed by talking to them, after which they will always respawn whenever a vacant house is available. Having an empty room ready for them beforehand will cause them to move in as soon as they are off-screen.

Bound NPCs can be found by listening to their "hurt" sounds, especially the Mechanic, as the Dungeon is teeming with enemies.

NPCs now have random names given to them on World Creation. Their deaths will be reported with these names. Also other NPCs will use them in their quotes. Upon respawning after Death will be given a new random name.

NPCs now may be told where to live using the new Housing Menu feature.

Two NPCs of the same type can no longer spawn, even in a multiplayer world. (Previously that was two additional merchants and second nurse. They had multiplayer conditions.)

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